The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Hibiscus, botanically known as Hibiscus rosa-sinensis and hereinafter referred to by the cultivar name ‘BIG BIRD’.
The genus Hibiscus comprises about 250 species of herbs, shrubs and trees in warm temperate and tropical regions; with leaves usually simple, mostly palmately veined, lobed or parted; flowers are mostly solitary in the leaf axils but sometimes in racemes, corymbs or panicles. Hibiscus is included in the family Malvaceae, which comprises about 95 genera of herbs, shrubs and trees originating in tropical and temperate regions. Hibiscus rosa-sinensis is a glabrate shrub, seldom over 8 feet tall in cultivation, but treelike to 15 feet or more in tropical regions. Leaves grow to 6-inches in length, and are ovate, usually serrate, mostly glossy green. Flowers are solitary in upper leaf axils.
The new Hibiscus is a product of a planned breeding program conducted by the Inventor in Webster, Tex. The objective of the program was to create new Hibiscus selections with improved bloom quality, color and floriferousness. A further objective was to produce plants that can be commercially produced on their own root systems, with improved plant habit, with regard to vigor and postproduction longevity.
The new variety was discovered in a controlled breeding program of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis and differs from its parents and other known cultivars of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis by the following characteristics in combination:                1. Upright, compact symmetrical plant habit that is suitable for container production;        2. Healthy dark green foliage;        3. Vigorous growth habit;        4. Large ruffled yellow flower with a dark maroon center; and        5. Free flowering.        